UPDATE: AITA for taking my niece to court over a coat?

A Reddit user shared an update about a heated situation involving their niece damaging an expensive coat and refusing to compensate. After involving their husband and showing evidence of the incident, they discussed insurance claims with their brother-in-law (BIL).

The BIL, unaware of the full story, took the matter seriously. The resolution involved selling the niece’s car to cover the cost and grounding her for the rest of the school year. Read the full update below for all the details.

‘ UPDATE: AITA for taking my niece to court over a coat?’

So here is a quick update, since the situation has been resolved. When my husband got home, I told him what happened and showed him the video. He asked if I spoke with my BIL and I said no, all my conversations were with my sister. He said that he will take care of it.

Now, a disclaimer: I understand nothing when it comes to insurance claims, and this is what my husband told me/I understood happened. My husband talked with my BIL, told him exactly what happened and showed him the *prank* video.

Then he told him that the coat was insured, we will be filing a claim and submitting the video, and we might have to file charges for the claim (he assured him that we would be dropping the charges, we do not want to send niece to jail).

Then he told him that one of two things might happen: after our insurance pays us, they will come after them. If their insurance pays, their premium will skyrocket. If it doesn’t, they might sue them, and might get a lien on their house.

My BIL asked if there was a way he could pay us without involving insurance, my husband told him that that was what we wanted at first, but that my sister insisted that they will not be paying us back. Apparently, my BIL was not in the know, and he was very pissed off at what my niece did, and my sister’s response.

So they came to this solution: my niece’s car will be sold, and if it doesn’t fetch the whole compensation money, she will have to get a job and pay me the whole check untill it is paid off. Also she is grounded for the rest of the school year. I am thankful for the people who encouraged me to talk with my husband.

Take a look at the comments from fellow users:

Dipping_My_Toes −  That’s a fair outcome that avoids lifetime level consequences for the niece and still stings hard enough to make the point. Communication is always a good place to start and very glad your BIL stepped up to handle the situation appropriately.

LadyCass79 −  What an excellent resolution. Thanks for sharing it. Your brother in law is a very good man. I hope your sister realizes how lucky she is to have a man with integrity. Hopefully, your niece is getting a timely life lesson that helps her future adult self understand more about life consequences.

Sunshinehappyfeet −  Your sister and niece are AH’s. Your BIL is the reasonable one. Whether you can afford to replace the jacket isn’t relevant. Willfully destroying someone’s $20,000 property is a felony. You may want to mention that to your sister.

Naive-Mechanic4683 −  Good outcome. Be prepared that your niece will probably hate/badmouth you for a long time, but this doesn’t mean you did something wrong!

Hopefully, she learned her lesson before she does the same to someone/something that money can’t fix. And she will at some point understand that she has no one but herself to blame.

MK_King69 −  Can I be honest? I’ve been thinking about this post a lot since you posted it! The AUDACITY of your niece. Ugh. I’m glad there is resolution. Thank you for the update!!

FlyGuy1922 −  Oh amazing!!! Glad this has been resolved and your niece is being properly punished!

journeyintopressure −  Well, now this is what I call a partner.

[Reddit User] −  r/BestOfRedditUpdates worthy?

DeCisse −  She fucked around and found out

Im_your_life −  Consider drafting a contract with those conditions. If they decide to change their mind, or your niece “can´t” find a job, or pretends she is paid less than she is to give you less money, or whatever happens, you have a better leg if you decide to sue them.

Not making an insurance claim and reporting it to the police now might hurt you in case they s**ew you over later on.

Do you think selling the niece’s car and grounding her was a fair resolution? How would you have handled this family conflict? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!